‘Idol’ steady in second week

Fox wins primetime, while 'Office' tops scripted fare

Ratings bellwether “American Idol” held steady Thursday, retaining all but 3% of its audience from its week-earlier outing in leading Fox to a primetime victory.

“Idol” had a 7.6 rating and 21 share in the 18-49 demo and 22.3 million viewers overall, compared with 7.7/21, 22.6 million on Jan. 20, its first Thursday of the season.The ongoing auditions for the singing competish easily outdistanced the second-place network in the 8 p.m. timeslot, ABC with “Wipeout” (2.4/7, 7.6 million).

NBC’s “The Office” (4.0/11, 7.9 million), which featured a surprise, unpromoted appearance from the series’ ancestral star Ricky Gervais, was the night’s top-rated scripted program in the demo, edging Fox’s “Bones” (3.9/10, 12.2 million). Benefiting from “Idol” as a lead-in, “Bones” had its highest-rated telecast since Valentine’s Day 2007.

“Parks and Recreation” (3.0/8, 5.9 million), airing after “The Office,” was the night’s only other series to get at least a 3.0 in the demo. Both NBC sitcoms were No. 1 in their timeslots among adults 18-34 and men 18-49.

As for the rest of NBC’s comedy six-pack, 8:30 p.m. freshman “Perfect Couples” (1.7/4, 3.5 million) shed nearly 25% of its lead-in, “Community” (2.2/6, 4.6 million), which equaled its 18-49 season high. (“Couples” was also down approximately 20% from its official season premiere a week earlier.) At 10 p.m., “30 Rock” (2.4/7, 4.9 million) fell a hair from the previous week. “Outsourced” (1.9/6, 4.1 million), while also losing close to a quarter of its leadin, did deliver NBC’s best performance in the demo at 10:30 p.m. this season and edged out the competition from ABC and CBS.